The servo drives can be used as sensors or sensor hubs and offer scalable IoT connectivity, for example via an edge PC in the cloud. According to Baumüller, their newly developed safety functions can further reduce the cycle times of machines. Intelligent functions from Baumüller's SmartValue software toolkit help to improve the energy balance of production and reduce manufacturing costs. The dimensions of the servo controllers have also been reduced: in addition to the space-saving bayed technology (b maXX 6300), the mono devices (b maXX 6500) are now also significantly more compact than their respective predecessors.

In terms of safety, various versions are available in compliance with the standardized safety levels (certification up to levels SIL 3 and PLe is currently being implemented), ranging from simple hardware-controlled STO (Safe-Torque-Off) to various higher safety functions, controlled via the FSoE protocol (Fail Safe over EtherCAT) or hardware I/Os. Both variants can also be combined to make the safe drive architecture as flexible as possible.

The new safety functions have been developed for applications with high dynamic and precision requirements. The safety module is integrated directly into the device in the servo controllers. Safety-relevant encoder signals can therefore be evaluated with even greater resolution, which increases position and speed accuracy. In addition, the safety functions of the servo controllers react better than before to safety-relevant events. When STO is triggered, the servo drive is switched torque-free with a time delay of less than 1 ms. This short reaction time allows the speed of the machine to be increased, thereby boosting overall productivity. The new SP (safe position) safety function for transmitting the safe position via FSoE also offers advantages. This not only enables safe room monitoring, but also collaboration in applications with multi-dimensional movements, such as laser cutting or robotics.

Other new functions relate to the acquisition, pre-processing and evaluation of machine data in the servo drive. With the intelligent monitoring functions from Baumüller's SmartValue modular software system, drive parameters can be recorded and transferred to other architecture layers such as edge PCs or the cloud. The integrated dynamic temperature model monitors the degree of utilization of important components in the power section. This allows the servo drives to be optimally dimensioned and used, which optimizes the use of resources and reduces energy consumption during operation. With the integrated oscilloscope function, the devices can send signals to the controller via the fieldbus and pass on information via an OPC UA server, for example.

The signals are provided continuously or triggered directly by the servo drive. No additional effort is required for external sensors, wiring or a separate evaluation unit. If the available data is not sufficient for the desired use case, the servo drives can be used as sensor hubs. This makes it possible to expand the database with external sensors, such as vibration sensors or data from an intelligent gearbox.

The Smart Energy Reduction function is based on this concept. It can be used to determine the energy consumption of individual axes per cycle. The energy measurement is carried out autonomously and in real time in the b-maXX servo drives used. In the superimposed PLC, a software module analyzes the transmitted measured values and then calculates the actual energy consumption across the entire drive system, among other things. The values are then displayed in the machine visualization. Alternatively, a dashboard displays the results of the measurement via open IoT interfaces such as OPC UA.

Baumüller at the SPS 2022: Hall 1, Stand 560